Otzi the ‘Iceman’ is a find that needs to be seen on DVD

The story “Iceman” comes from Omnibus Entertainment and director/writer Felix Randau to portray a time in history that is still being discovered and constantly changes today.

The film
tells the story of Kaleb (Jurgen Vogel), a man who is part of a small village.
Surrounded by his woman and other members, they lived a quiet and productive
life. When Kaleb ventures out one day to do some hunting up in the hills, he
doesn’t know that a band of men is about to destroy everything he knows.

Seeing
the smoke from his village, Kaleb returns to discover everyone is dead and
those responsible are lingering nearby. After they leave, he goes from house to
house looking for survivors. Away from the village next to a young boy, the
newest member of their tribe has been protected from the savagery.

Kaleb
clearly makes the decision to track down those responsible and holding them
accountable. Taking the child with him, their travels are difficult and slow.
As he closes in on the men responsible, he makes a decision regarding the child
that becomes a necessity.

The
weather begins to change but Kaleb pushes on until he finds what he is looking
for and makes the second biggest decision of this journey. Sometimes when you
are blinded by vengeance, you don’t see what’s coming.

Vogel as
Kaleb plays a man of few words but then again this is a film with few words. He
is a strong man among his people and when it is all stripped away, he has
nothing to lose regarding his decisions. This actor has the unique ability to
let his acting speak volumes and I understood every message he is trying to
convey. It takes a lot to impress me and Vogel has done just that with this
performance. Inviting me into this journey and then keeping me there through
the entire story is what I love about this film.

In
playing the role of Kaleb, Vogel says, “The great thing about being an
actor is that there are always roles that present a challenge. Roles like this
one make you learn a lot. It got me interested in Otzi and the time he lives in
and the script is really exciting. I didn’t have to think about it for long. I
found the idea of playing Otzi fascinating because this role is something
completely new for me.”

The theme
of revenge for the character of Kaleb is front and center after discovering his
family and friends are dead. Vogel says, “Ortiz is compelled by revenge to
extremes and only then does he sense that he has gone too far. In this early
period, the rule of force was applied to exercise justice, but men also have
feelings, a conscience, this is not an invention of the modern age. That is
what links us today with this Stone Age man. We can identify with his conflicts
and challenge just as much today”.

Other
cast include Andre Hennricke as Krant, Sabin Tambrea as Tasar, Susanne Wuest as
Kisis, Martin Schneider as Gosar, Violetta Schurawlow as Mitar, Anna F. as
Rulan, Paula Renzler as Rasop and Franco Nero as Ditob.

Where did
the idea of this character come from, well I’m about to tell you.

In 1991,
two hikers were walking near Tisenjoch/Giogo di Tisa in the Senales Valley when
they discovered a human corpse. Believing it was someone who had died due to
exposure on the mountain, what they did not realize is exactly what they had
found and how it would change what we know about early man.

Unable to
bring the body down due to the weather, they did manage to bring an axe that
was found and showed it to Reinhold Messner who realized it was very old.
Returning to finally retrieve the body, they would also make a discover of
personal items and a bow. Taking their find to Otztal Valley in Austria, the
forensics could begin.

Testing concluded
that the man was over 5,000 years old and when researchers returned to where he
was found, they uncovered other possessions. As the study of the mummy
continued, they would discover tattoos and what seemed to be his understanding
of illness and how to treat what ailed him like the use of birch bracket
fungus.

The
clothing found with Otzi consisted of leather and grass fibers and a fair
amount of braiding. His tools consisted of a copper axe, a dagger and tools to
make repairs. He was also found with a woven map and other items.

The
question became, how did Otzi die? It quickly became clear that he was shot
with an arrow but may have also been attacked days before he died. The question
then became was he hunted down and murdered? All of this would come into play
in making of the film “Iceman”.

Writer/director
Randau says about the story, “When we started getting into the material, I
had been searching for a mythical figure from our culture who could provide me
with the basis for an archaic story — the drama of man, as it were. Then Otzi
simply arrived at my doorstep, a gift that I gladly accepted.”

Producer
Jan Kruger adds, “I have to frankly admit that Otiz hadn’t really been on
my radar before Felix game me this script to read. I was reminded of films like
‘Dances with Wolves’ and ‘Quest for Fire,’ which I found brilliant. A native
subject from Europe and on top of that, an uncopyrighted protagonist.”

In
regards to the lack of language in the film (which by the way I felt was in no
way needed), Randau said, “I wrote the story in such a way that language
does not have any dramaturgic function in the classical sense. The plot is not
driven forward by the spoken word”. Of course there are moments in the
film where there is a language that although no one knows how language was used
at that time, Randau called on linguist Chasper Pult to help.

“Iceman”
takes us on the journey of a man who feels the need for justice. From the
moment the film began I was taken in and never turned away from the screen.
Every movement the people of this time made was not wasted — from living life,
making food, rituals of death, making clothing, hunting and even revenge. This
film does exactly the same thing — wastes nothing.

Using the
surroundings to bring the story even more believability, I have to give the
cast and crew so much credit because it looked rough, cold, wet and uncomfortable.
That being said the places chosen to bring the story to film are sheer
perfection in keeping me invested in the storyline.

If you are
given the opportunity see “Iceman” and share in the wonder of someone who once
lived in our world and the story that needed to be told. The bonus feature of “Making
of Iceman” is amazing.